Sneha Rawlani
First and foremost, why would I – a mere 17-year-old – be bothered about a construction project? How does it have anything to do with me? Why should I have a problem with it? Why should I even care? It’s not going to affect my life in any way.
Or is it?
The Dhamra port project is actually being carried through, even when it’s construction would have such huge consequences on the wildlife of the Bhitarkanika Sanctuary and the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary, and not to mention, the Olive Ridley Turtles, 200,000 of which visit the nesting beaches at Gahirmatha every year. It is beyond my comprehension, how such a “dangerous” project can be allowed, and NOBODY, no government authority, even, is stopping them! Just a few concerned citizens, environmentalists, and a few helpless NGOs are the only ones who have bothered to even bring up the issue. If it weren’t for them, the matter wouldn’t even be categorized as an “issue”. It is so amazing that people- the common man, government bodies- aren’t protesting left, right and centre. If the world worked according to me, the Tata’s would’ve been boycotted by now. For a company that is so well-known for it’s spotless CSR profile, a company that is so well-reputed and has such a glorified social image, going through with such an endeavour seems quite foolish to me, for it should certainly kill that reputation of theirs. And if it doesn’t kill their image? Then God help us all, because consumerism has consumed humanity. If we don’t realize that such actions are putting our ecology in such grave danger, than we’re all doomed. Today is when we should think a million times before we sanction something, because tomorrow, we aren’t going to be able undo those things. The threat this project poses, is really quite obvious. Any moderately educated, literate person who comes across any credible literature on this issue, should be immediately be able to tell that this is a huge mistake and the consequences are going to be terrible. Which is why it amazes me so much, that the legal system dragged it out for so long, and it’s still going through! The government is corrupt, yes. But how can it be so stupid?
How can people be so blind and ignorant? If the claims and consequences of a project were a little ambiguous, the lack of outrage and concern would still be understandable. But when the implications of it are so clear, when they’re practically staring us in the face, how can we let it go? There’s only that much you can abuse nature. But after that point – the point that we, human beings, crossed a long time ago – nature’s not going to sit there and take it. No, nature is not going to wake up and say, “Okay, that’s enough”, but in the future, we’re going to have to pay for it.
But how would a “few” turtles and other animals killed here and there make a difference, one may ask. It would make a difference- a hell of difference- because they are a part of the system of nature, just as we, human beings, are. The balance of nature is very complex, intricate and precarious. A loss of even a few species would adversely affect many other species. Especially since the Olive Ridley Turtle is and endangered species, which means it should be given extra protection, in fact, and it is also given a Schedule 1 status in India- that is, it’s as important as saving the tigers; their situation too has become that bad. But if you still think that these animals are of no importance, that they make no difference to our lives, what so ever, that still doesn’t give us the right to take their lives in our hands. It is not our place, and we very conveniently and selfishly forget that.
Coming to how this might affect me, it’s not going to kill me, or anything- unlike the helpless, anguished, beautiful flora and fauna present at and around the site -but it is a part of the world I inherited from my ancestors. Nature offers us everything’s it’s got. So we take advantage of it, and we have no respect. Human beings have become monsters, possessed by greed and desire, and we are raping the earth. When the world is given to us, it seems only fair to pass it on to the future generations in the same condition. I realize that I should respect what nature gives to me; be grateful instead of greedy. I’ve lived only seventeen years, but I can still see that the amount of damage that’s been done even in that relatively short period of time has been quite tremendous. And it’s only getting worse. Ten, fifteen years down the line, I don’t want to have to explain to children what “turtles” looked like. And that’s only one example. At the rate we’re going, there’s going to be a lot more explaining to do. Above all, it is wrong. It is unethical and immoral. These species have as much right to the earth as we do. They exist with us. They are very emphatically a part of the same world that we have inhabited. In fact, they probably got here before us. (The Olive Ridley Turtles definitely got to the Dhamra port site before the Tatas did) Therefore, we can’t threaten their existence, make them subservient to us and impose ourselves upon them just to carry out our little selfish needs and wants. It just isn’t fair.
To conclude, I would like to address all the Tatas of the world; all the big shots out there : When someone comes and encroaches upon your home, threatens your life, and then leaves your world in ashes without a second thought, or a backward glance, let’s see what you’ll have to say about THAT.
This fragile earth deserves a voice. Lend it yours.
This post is tagged Dhamra, Jairam Ramesh, Tata
